


Limerence

by queenvenus



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-09
Updated: 2018-09-09
Packaged: 2019-07-10 07:01:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15944192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenvenus/pseuds/queenvenus
Summary: limerence; the state of being infatuated with another person.Keith and Allura go dancing on a distant planet.





	Limerence

 

The room is alive with something spiritual that tugs at Keith’s heartstrings. They had just saved another planet from near destruction, and the species that inhabited it– a strange group of alien called the Roxalin– insisted on celebrating. The elder Roxalin, an ancient looking man with silver hair down to his waist and antennae protruding from his forehead, had given them all necklaces adorned with big white flowers (almost like Leis, Keith thinks). He places a three fingered hand on each of their foreheads and blesses them in a language that sounds like honey spilling from his tongue.

The Roxalin give them clothes to wear, which each of the paladins initially refuse to wear, but Allura quiets them with a sharp look. She tells them it’s traditional to wear Roxalin clothing when on their planet, and that not doing so is disrespectful. It turns out that the clothes aren’t that bad. It’s more like a suit, Keith realizes, with handsome silver buttons and soft white fabric. A dress is given to Pidge and Allura, and it’s a little strange seeing the bespectacled girl wearing something so dainty and frilly. But she looks nice, and when Keith points this out to her, Pidge blushes a demure rosy color. Once they are all changed, the elder Roxalin gathers everyone inside the main dining hall. After a brief speech thanking the paladins of Voltron for all they’ve done, the music starts up.

And then they’re dancing.

Keith wasn’t a dancer by any means. Once he sees everyone grabbing for a partner, he starts to back away to the edge of the crowd, hoping that he can sneak away undetected. It’s no use, however, because suddenly he’s being taken by the hand and guided back into the fray.  
“Don’t think you can get away so easily, young lion!” an older woman chides him gently. Keith manages a smile, trying to appear polite. Her eyes are a pure, vibrant green flecked with gold, antennae twitching with affection. The drums are loud and vibrate in Keith’s chest, guiding him through the motions. The flutes, the strings, the melodious harp. It’s a roaring symphony. The notes glide and stomp in perfect harmony. He’s being twirled in circles, passed from one partner to another. Keith catches sight of Hunk, who dances like it’s a second nature to him, laughing from deep inside his stomach as a flower crown is placed upon his head. Pidge is so small that the Roxalin she dances with almost has to bend down in order to grasp her hands. 

   He can’t see Lance or Shiro, but it doesn’t matter because he’s turning and spinning again. The Roxalin stare in wonder at his fingers, and place their own hands on the sides of their heads, mimicking the ears of the humans they’re dancing with. The Roxalin laugh at their strangeness, and soon Keith is laughing with them. It’s odd and it’s beautiful and wonderful, the way they dance and meld together. Keith never thought he’d be light years away from earth, wearing a white suit and dancing with a species that have three fingers and eyes like polished jewels. It makes something warm unfurl inside his chest.  
And then he spins into Allura’s arms.  
She’s _beautiful_ , it’s the only word Keith can think of. 

   The white of her dress is laced with gold, and it makes her silver hair shine. The golden flowers that swing from her neck are also slipped into her hair, and she looks like a dream. She’s swept away by the festive air, smiling and giggling as she looks up into Keith’s face. Before he can say anything, Allura grabs his hands and they’re dancing together. Her eyes are sparkling amethyst, face flushed with exertion.  
   Being this close to her is dizzying, Keith doesn’t have the courage to strike up conversation amidst all the turning and jumping. Once the dance slows down to simple turns, Keith is handed something. A small glass filled with red liquid. He starts for a second. Was this _alcohol?_ Keith sniffs it experimentally.  
“You sip it and pass it on,” Allura says, holding a glass of her own.  
“I-I’m not old enough to drink…” Keith said worriedly.  
“It’s not wine. It’s one of the Roxalin’s biggest exports. I used to drink this with Coran whenever we visited here.” Allura’s eyes are bright with a long forgotten memory. “Father was very fond of this place….as was mother.”  
Keith notices the somber look that threatens to encroach the happiness on her face. He imagines the room filled with alteans. He imagines a younger Allura dancing with her father, full of laughter and utterly unbridled _joy._ How many ghosts did Allura envision now?  
“Well,” Keith manages, pulling Allura out of her thoughts. “let’s try it, okay?” He hooks an arm through hers and they take a sip from their respective glasses before carefully untangling their arms and passing the drinks.

Whatever Roxalin’s biggest export is takes effect immediately. Keith realizes then that Allura never specified what it is they were actually drinking, and a warm feeling goes zip lining through him. Dancing with Allura is suddenly ten times more delightful. He leads her through the spins and moves, watching as her dress flares and flutters like a dream. Her hair is flowing moonlight, delicate strands sticking to her forehead as the dance gets faster.

   The music starts to swell. Keith can barely keep up with Allura, who must’ve done this dance hundreds of times and looks like something ethereal. He can’t keep his eyes off her, the way she glides and jumps. She’s like the aurora borealis or an imploding star, a sight seen only once in a lifetime. Keith thinks that he will never glimpse something more marvelous ever again. His heart is hammering, and with another spin that makes his stomach roll, he’s suddenly in Allura’s arms again.

There’s a warmth that has nothing to do with the drink spreading through him. Allura’s smile makes him giddy, he can barely meet her eyes.  
“You look very nice, Keith.” she comments, and he blushes.  
“Thanks…” he’s tripping on his tongue now. “y-you look…you look very nice too…well, not _nice_. You look…beautiful.” he finally finds the word he’s been looking for, feeling foolish and bashful and wholly unprepared for the sudden desire to kiss her rising up within him.  
He tries to smother it down, but he finds himself leaning closer towards her. They’re practically nose to nose now, Keith can see the flecks in her eyes and her delicate eyelashes.  
“This is where we throw the flowers.” Allura whispers, and it takes a minute for Keith to register this.  
“Huh?” Suddenly, his vision is blurred with showers of golden petals. The music has reached a crescendo, and everyone has thrown their necklaces in the air. The floor is covered in piles of sweet smelling flowers, as everyone claps and cheers. Keith feels a swelling in his heart. How could it be that he was so desperately in love?  
He was in love with the universe as a whole, with the Roxalin and all their buoyant glory, with his fellow Paladins.  
With….with….

“I love you.” Keith says, the words barely make it out his mouth. He can barely hear them over the galloping of his own heart. Allura, swept up in the cheering, doesn’t seem to hear him.  
“What was that?” She asks, leaning in close to him. For some reason, Keith is not as disappointed as he could be. It’s okay, because Allura has petals in her hair and this is the happiest he had ever seen her.  
“Nothing!” Keith says, raising his voice. He smiles down at her, and he finds that he could stay like this, with her, forever.  
“Nothing.”

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you all liked it! i wanted to capture the feeling of complete joy, you know, the kind that makes your heart feel like it’s bursting! thank you for taking the time to read this! 
> 
> Check out my tumblr @https://moonletters.tumblr.com


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